Self-bailing boat



Dec. 2, 1969 A. UTVIK 3,481,300

SELF-BAILING BOAT Filed March 8, 1968 INVENTOR. H/ZA ZZ F/WAE Fry/1eUnited States Patent U. S. Cl. 114185 7 Claims ABSTRACT OF THEDISCLOSURE A boat with a double bottom having positive buoyancy and withthe cabin floor above the normal waterline and sloping from bow tostern. Water outlets are provided in the transom above floor level toallow escape of water. Flap valves in the water outlets prevent ingressof water.

This invention relates to self-bailing boats, having the cabin floor ordeck located above the waterline and wherein at least one water outletdischarges from the space above said floor, the water outlet beingprovided with a one-way valve to prevent ingress of water through thewater outlet.

A primary object of the present invention is to provide an improvedself-bailing boat, the self-bailing properties of which are maintainedindependent of the amount of water in the boat and whether the boat istravelling or not.

According to the invention, this is accomplished in that the boat hasbuoyancy even when completely water-filled, that the floor slopes downtowards the water outlet and that this is located above the floorsurface so close to this that water on the floor will flow towards thewater outlet and, subsequently, will be discharged. According to onepreferred embodiment the water outlet is located in the boat transom,and the cabin floor slopes from the bow down towards the stern of theboat. With this arrangement, the speed and acceleration of the boat inthe water aids in bailing.

Further according to the invention, the buoyancy of the boat ispreferably greater in the bow than in the stern, whereby the boat willalways have its bow higher than the stern independent of the amount ofwater inboard. With this arrangement the sloping position of the flooris maintained also when the boat has a large quantity of water inboard.

Preferably, one water outlet is located on each side of the boat centerline so that the boat will remain in balance during bailing.

The space below the floor or double-bottom space may be filled with abuoyant material, e.g. foamed plastic. This feature permits maintainingthe self-bailing properties of the boat even though the space below thefloor should not be watertight, e.g. if the outer bottom of the boat hasbeen damaged. I

According to one form of the invention in connection with a boat havingwater outlets in the transom, each water outlet is provide-d with anautomatic one-way valve constiuted by a flap located outside the wateroutlet opening, said flap being movable substantially in a verticaldirection in a guide parallel with the transom, the lower edge of saidflap resting on a surface located below said water outlet opening andinclined downwards towards the plane of said opening, whereas the upperedge of the flap with the aid of a slidable hinge is located above saidwater outlet opening and adjacent the plane thereof, whereby the flapunder the action of gravity slides downwards on said inclined surfaceand seals against said opening, but in the presence of water in the boatis swung about its hinge due to the pressure of said water so that thewater outlet opening is laid free and permits bailing. This one-3,481,300 Patented Dec. 2, 1969 way valve operates without springs andhas no movable elements except the valve element itself.

In one embodiment of this form of the invention, the hinge of the flapcomprises an extension located on the rear face of the flap top edge,which extension reaches the outer guide surface of the guide. Thisconstruction permits a simple and reliable hinge for the flap, whichhinge is formed in one piece with the flap.

One embodiment of the invention is described closer below with referenceto the accompanying drawing, in which FIGS. 1 and 2 are side views andpartly in section show a self-bailing boat according to the invention.FIG. 1 shows the boat attitude with normal load, whereas FIG. 2 showsthe attitude assumed by the boat when a substantial amount of water isinboard. FIG. 3 shows to an enlarged scale a longitudinal section of thestern of the boat, and FIG. 4 is a rear view of the boat.

FIGS. 1 and 2 show the boat 1 in the water, the surface of which isdesignated 2. The boat has a deck 3, a bottom 5, a transom 7 and a cabinfloor 9. The floor 9 is located entirely above the waterline 2 andslopes down from the boat bow towards the stern when the boat has normalload position. The space 11 between the boat bottom 5 and the floor 9 isin this embodiment watertight and filled with foamed plastics materialwith closed pores. The volume of this space is greater at the forwardpart of the boat than at the rear part. In the transom 7, two openings13 are located immediately above the floor 9. These openings areprovided with one-way valves, which are better shown in FIGS. 3 and 4.

As shown in FIG. 3, each one-way valve comprises a flap 15 movable in aguide located in the transom 7. This guide comprises an inner and anouter plate 17 and 19, respectively, parallel with the transom.

FIG. 4 shows the boat transom, and in the left part of FIG. 4 the flap15 and outer plate 19 have been removed so that the inner plate 17 withthe water outlet opening 13 may be viewed. The right side of FIG. 4shows the flap 15 after the outer plate 19 has been removed.

The water outlet opening 13 is located in the inner plate 17 and fromthis opening water may flow down between the plates 17 and 19 and outthrough an opening 21 below the outer plate 19. The flap 15 rests on tworunners 23 located between the plates 17 and 19 and having uppersurfaces 25 inclined downwards-inwards toward the rear face of plate 17.Along its upper edge the flap has a bead or bulge 27 with substantiallycylindrical cross section. This bead 27 is located on the rear face ofthe flap and engages the plate 19.

Due to this arrangement the flap 15 may slide up and down in the guidebetween the plates 17 and 19. The flap is simultaneously able to rotateabout the hinge formed by the bead 27. In response to the action ofgravity the lower edge of the flap will slide along the upper faces 25of the runners 23 so that the lower part of the flap engages the rearface of plate 17. The upper part of the flap at this time engages theupper part of plate 17, whereby the outlet opening 13 in this plate issealed. No water can thus enter the boat from the outside through theseopenings. Outside water pressure will increase the effectiveness of theseal.

Should there be water in the boat this water will exert pressure on theinside of flap 15 causing this to swing about the hinge formed by thebead 27 towards the position shown with dash-dotted lines. An opening isthereby formed between the flap and the plate 17 so that water can runout.

FIG. 1 thus shows the position of the boat in the Water with normalload. The cabin floor 9 lies above the water surface 2 along its entirelength. Should water or rain splash into the boat this water will flowalong the floor towards the stern and out through the outlet openings 13in the transom 7.

FIG. 2 shows the boat in a position when a substantial amount of waterhas entered the boat, such as through a breaking wave. The water will becollected in the Stern part of the boat since the fioor 9 slopes towardsthe stern and also since the stern is more easily pressed into the Waterthan the forward part of the boat, which has greater displacement. Asshown in FIG. 2 the rear part of floor 9 and the outlet openings 13 arenow below the outer water surface. In accordance with the invention theboat has buoyancy even though completely water-filled and therefore theinner water surface will have a higher level than the outer watersurface. A certain water pressure is then exerted on the inner faces ofthe flaps 15 in the outlet openings, whereby the flaps are swung abouttheir hinges so that the water outlets are opened. Due to the higherwater pressure inboard this water will flow out through the outletopenings until the boat is bailed. The boat thus is self-bailingindependent of the amount of Water inboard and whether the boat ismoving or lying still. Experiments have shown that water collected inthe stern will not reach farther than about the center of the boat. Thisis due to the boat assuming an increasingly inclined position withincreasing amount of water inboard.

What I claim is:

1. A self-bailing boat comprising a fioor located higher than thewaterline of said boat, said floor sloping down from the bow towards thestern, at least one water outlet opening above said floor and located inthe stern portion of the boat so that water flowing down towards thestern will be discharged through said Water outlet; said water outletbeing provided with a one-way valve to prevent entrance of water throughsaid outlet, said boat having buoyancy even when completely Water-filledand having a buoyancy greater at the bow than at the stern whereby saidboat will always assume a position with a higher bow independent of theamount of water inboard.

2. A self-bailing boat as claimed in claim 1 wherein said water outletis located in a boat transom close above said floor.

3. A self-bailing boat asclaimed in claim 1 wherein one water outlet islocated on each side of the boat center line.

4. A self-bailing boat as claimed in claim 1 wherein the space below thefloor is filled with a buoyant material.

5. A self-bailing boat as claimed in claim 4 wherein said buoyantmaterial is a foamed plastic material with closed cells.

6. A self-bailing boat as claimed in claim 3 wherein each Water outletis provided with an automatic one-way valve comprising a flap locatedoutside said water outlet opening, said flap being movable substantiallyin a vertical direction in a guide, said flaps lower edge resting on asurface located below said water outlet opening, said surface beinginclined downwards towards the plane of said water outlet opening, saidflaps upper edge being a slidable hinge and located above said wateroutlet opening and adjacent the plane thereof, whereby said flap underthe action of gravity slides downwards on said inclined surface andseals against said water outlet opening, but in the presence of water inthe boat is swung about its slidable hinge due to the pressure of saidwater so that said water outlet opening is laid free permittingdrainage.

7. A self-bailing boat as claimed in claim 6, characterized in that theupper hinge of said fiap comprises an extension located on the outerface of the flap upper edge, which extension engages the outer guidesurface of said guide.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,884,888 5/1959 Pujol 1l4--l852,929,347 3/1960 Veltman 114-183 2,949,879 8/1960 Kehn 1l4185 2,959,14411/ 1960 Youtie 114185 ANDREW H. FARRELL, Primary Examiner

